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We may be living in a golden age of TV, but panning through all the dross to find that gold can be time-consuming and tedious. For every much-discussed hit like Severance, House of the Dragon, and The Bear, there are dozens of new original shows that barely tip the cultural needle. And with so many new streaming services competing with HBO, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, and Disney Plus, it’s impossible to keep up with everything new to view. But The Verge’s TV section is ready to help. Our news, reviews, and interviews help you find the next Stranger Things or Star Trek: Strange New Worlds in time to keep up with the cultural conversation. And our essays and analysis invite you to consider the deeper context of what you’re watching.

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BBC will stop using AI in Doctor Who promos.

The marketing team for the longtime sci-fi series halted its use of generative AI for Doctor Who marketing emails following complaints, reports Deadline.

The response from the BBC:

As part of a small trial, marketing teams used generative AI technology to help draft some text for two promotional emails and mobile notifications to highlight Doctor Who programming available on the BBC. 

We followed all BBC editorial compliance processes and the final text was verified and signed-off by a member of the marketing team before it was sent. We have no plans to do this again to promote Doctor Who.


The creators of 3 Body Problem want to have ‘a back and forth’ with the book

Though Netflix’s 3 Body Problem is very different from Cixin Liu’s novel, the show’s creators say they wanted the two stories to share the same essential narrative DNA.

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What do the Purah Pad and 3 Body Problem VR headset have in common?

Neither has any of the apps we’re used to.

Andrew Webster’s reviews of the 3 Body headset and the tablet from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom each drive home the necessity of a healthy ecosystem, even for the coolest tech.


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The latest SAG-AFTRA AI contracts define voice actors as human beings.

The union’s animation voice actors voted 95.52 percent to 4.48 percent on Friday to ratify contracts that were similar to the deal that ended the actors’ strike last year but didn’t include the same definition, as Variety notes.

The contracts (summarized here) run from July 1st, 2023 through June 30th, 2026, and include pay raises and add limits on the use of AI to replicate voice actors.


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FX drops a trailer for The Veil, a spy thriller starring Elizabeth Moss.

The new Hulu exclusive series features Moss as super spy Imogen Salter. According to FX’s show description, it explores “the surprising and fraught relationship between two women who play a deadly game of truth and lies on the road from Istanbul to Paris and London.” The show is written and executive produced by Steven Knight (Peaky Blinders).

The six-episode season is expected to debut on Hulu on April 30th.


Netflix’s 3 Body Problem adaptation channels the book’s spirit but not its brilliance

Though David Benioff, D. B. Weiss, and Alexander Woo’s 3 Body Problem is impressive, it really feels like just an introduction to Cixin Liu’s deeper ideas.

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After Quarterback, comes Reciever.

Netflix’s latest sports docuseries follows the same format as the Peyton Manning-produced Quarterback. The only difference is that it highlights top NFL receivers, including Davante Adams, Justin Jefferson, George Kittle, Deebo Samuel, and Amon-Ra St. Brown.

The eight-episode series, Receiver, hits Netflix this summer and comes as part of the streamer’s broader push into sports documentaries and live events.


June the 4th be with you.

Live-action Star Wars show The Acolyte will bring the High Republic era of the franchise to TV for the first time on June 4th.

StarWars.com announced the show’s premiere date with this less-than-subtle bloody lightsaber poster, reading “In an age of light a darkness rises.” Spoooooooky. Also, the site says to expect the series’ official teaser trailer tomorrow.


A picture of a concrete floor with a lightsaber laying on it, a streak of what looks like blood rising from it.
Seems... dark.
Image: Disney
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DirecTV will let you cut out local channels to save money.

The satellite company announced today that subscribers choosing its new “No Locals” package will save $12 a month.

The company helpfully suggests viewers drop local channels in the summer months to try it out and add them back in the fall. As Variety notes, that just so happens to be when the NFL, which is increasingly streaming in more places, picks up again.


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Animation preservation saves the day.

Famed animator Max Fleischer’s granddaughter, Jane Fleischer Reid, has been supervising restorations of his work, according to the New York Museum of Modern Art’s description of its recent film series showcasing him.

Gizmodo spotted this pre- and- post-restoration comparison of a clip from the original nine-episode run of Superman cartoons. Fleischer Reid’s Fabulous Fleischer Cartoons Restored group has been posting other samples on X, too.


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The cast of X-Men ‘97 want you to feel the hype.

It’s kind of telling how X-Men ‘97’s creator / showrunner Beau DeMayo isn’t featured in this new sizzle reel hyping up the show before its March 20th premiere, but the cast seems pretty excited to be back voicing their iconic roles.


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Owen Wilson will star in a new show on Apple TV Plus.

With Loki season two wrapped up, an unnamed 10-episode comedy written by Jason Keller (Ford v Ferrari) sounds like it could be worth a watch.

Starring Wilson in the lead role, the comedy follows Pryce Cahill, an over-the-hill, ex-pro golfer whose career was derailed prematurely 20 years ago. After he gets fired from his job at an Indiana sporting goods store and his wife walks out on him, Pryce hedges his bets entirely on a troubled 17-year-old golf phenom.

I’m hoping it’s the spiritual Happy Gilmore successor I’ve futilely prayed for over the years.


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The latest Eli Roth joint is a six-episode VR series premiering on Meta’s Horizon Worlds.

The premiere episode of “Faceless Lady” will debut on April 4th at 5 pm PT on Meta’s social VR platform, with the remaining five episodes dropping every Thursday, Variety reports. This is the third scripted VR original that Roth and Crypt TV have made for Meta, following 2022’s “Haunted House: Trick-VR-Treat” and “Be Mine.”

Those without a Meta Quest headset can catch the first two episodes on Crypt TV’s Facebook page.


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3 Body Problem’s final trailer is a prelude to war.

The latest (and seemingly final) trailer for Netflix’s upcoming 3 Body Problem adaptation doesn’t quite spell out exactly what kind of mysterious threat plunges humanity as a whole into a panic. But it’s pretty clear that the Earth’s most brilliant minds are gearing up for a war they might not be able to win when 3 Body Problem debuts on March 21st.


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Rooster Teeth is shutting down after an over two-decade-long run.

In a memo to employees obtained by Variety, Rooster Teeth general manager Jordan Levin wrote that the company is closing “due to challenges facing digital media resulting from fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization.”

Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns Rooster Teeth, is in talks to sell the rights to some of the production company’s series, including RWBY, Red vs. Blue, and Gen:Lock, Variety reports. And while WBD is also reportedly looking to sell the Roost podcast network, it will remain operational.


The best entertainment of 2024

Our guide to the most interesting games, movies, and TV shows of the year.

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Sugar is looking sweet.

One of the more intriguing upcoming additions to Apple TV Plus is the gritty detective series Sugar, and you can get a first glimpse of it in the trailer below. It stars Colin Farrell and starts streaming on April 5th.


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House of the Dragon sounds like it’s coming back in June.

HBO still hasn’t announced the official premiere date for House of the Dragon season 2, but according to a new report from Variety, it’s probably going to be a good idea to get all caught up on the show by this June.


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Netflix’s Ripley looks downright stunning.

It was sort of a given that Netflix’s new adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley would make for an intriguing watch, but the series’ latest trailer also leaves little question about how absolutely gorgeous it’s going to be when it hits the streamer on April 4th.


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Hollywood could be in for another major strike, this time from its production workers.

Deadline reports that film and TV labor unions are ready to strike if talks break down with Hollywood studios tomorrow. Studios previously narrowly averted a strike with one of the unions, the Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), in 2021.

Now, the IATSE is preparing to bargain for health and pension benefits with two other unions for “the first time since 1988,” according to the Teamsters.


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A new Netflix show looks Cronenberg’s The Fly, but with a chicken nugget.

And, I suppose, without all the body horror.

Chicken Nuggets trailer introduces the story of a woman stepping into a techno-locker that turns her into a crispy ball of breaded chicken, and now her dad and a guy who has a crush on her. It starts streaming on March 15th.


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Netflix says no to more Michelle Yeoh.

The streaming service, answering a question we asked in November, has canceled The Brothers Sun, a dark action comedy starring Michelle Yeoh, Justin Chien, and Sam Song Li.

Deadline, which reported the cancellation yesterday, wrote that it simply underperformed during its first — and now only — season. If you missed the show, enjoy this killer rendition of “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” from the trailer.


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The nixed WWDC Larry David video is back on YouTube.

It’s... pretty clear why Apple, specifically, would have gotten cold feet about showing this Curb Your Enthusiasm-style skit, imagining him as an app reviewer.

This was reportedly made for 2014’s WWDC. It probably won’t be on YouTube for long, so enjoy this unlisted video while it lasts.


The Expanse is getting action figures (assuming this Kickstarter pans out).

The Nacelle Company got the official license to make these figs — while most are at the “digital render on Kickstarter” stage, one of the physical paint masters already made it onto the cover of ToyCollectr Magazine.

Avasarala, as always, looks dressed to kill political opponents, Bobby’s in her power armor, and Miller can go hat or hatless. It’s $320 for the whole 8-figure set, $39 each, or $75 for the two-packs.


Tap for larger image. Lots of cool accessories not pictured!
Tap for larger image. Lots of cool accessories not pictured!
Image: The Nacelle Company
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Season 3 of Hacks hits Max on May 2nd.

It’s been two years since Max’s Hacks sent Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance, and Hannah Einbinder’s Ava Daniel on their separate ways. But from the looks of the show’s new season 3 trailer, the pair are in for a momentous reunion when Hacks returns on May 2nd.


The golden age of DVDs isn’t over yet for anime fans

Physical media might seem like it’s on its deathbed, but the anime DVD and Blu-ray industry couldn’t be more alive.

Physical media week

Exploring the importance of discs and cartridges in an increasingly digital age.